Fury in Puerto Rico over warehouse filled with disaster supplies
Desperate Puerto Ricans break into warehouse full of Hurricane Maria disaster supplies from 2017 after discovering it during earthquake damage checks as emergency director is fired
- People in the southern city of Ponce, Puerto Rico, discovered a warehouse filled with water, cots and other unused emergency supplies unused since 2017
- Locals broke in to retrieve goods as they struggle following a huge earthquake but police evacuated them
- Food, diapers and medicine were discovered during checks for damage from the 6.4 magnitude earthquake on January 7
- The shocking discovery comes after in April, President Trump blamed Puerto Rico for holding up Hurricane Maria disaster relief
- Governor of Puerto Rico Wanda Vázquez has fired the director of the US territory’s emergency management agency Carlos Acevedo
- The finding of the warehouse upset many in Puerto Rico already angry over the government’s botched response to Hurricane Maria
- Vázquez said the inaction in distributing supplies was unacceptable and ordered an investigation that must be completed in two days
- The mayor of Ponce, María Meléndez, said he had not known about the warehouse and its contents
Puerto Ricans struggling after a recent earthquake are outraged after a warehouse was discovered to be full of disaster relief supplies from 2017’s Hurricane Maria, which were never distributed.
Desperate locals in the southern city of Ponce broke in to the warehouse after finding hoards of food, water, cots and other unused emergency supplies during checks for damage from the earthquake several days ago.
The governor of Puerto Rico fired the director of the US territory’s emergency management agency after the warehouse was found filled with the likes of diapers and medicine, apparently unused since the island was hit by Hurricane Maria in September 2017.
The warehouse was discovered on Saturday, and police were called in to remove people taking supplies.
The shocking discovery comes after Democrats pushed for the release of Congress-approved emergency funds, following President Trump’s statement that Puerto Rico was holding up its own disaster relief.
The finding of the warehouse appears to be a vindication for Trump, who has long blasted island leadership for their poor planning in the aftermath of the 2017 hurricane. He tweeted in April: ‘So many wonderful people, but with such bad Island leadership and with so much money wasted.’
Gov. Wanda Vázquez (left) said she had ordered an investigation after learning the emergency supplies had been piled in the warehouse since the hurricane in 2017. The director of the US territory’s emergency management agency Carlos Acevedo (right) has been fired.
A man removes diapers and baby wipes from the warehouse filled with supplies believed to be from 2017 on Saturday
The warehouse was filled with water, cots and other unused emergency supplies that could have helped those struggling
Locals set off a social media uproar Saturday when they broke in to retrieve goods as the area struggles to recover from a strong earthquake on January 7
In May, Trump claimed Congress had given $91billion Puerto Rico for Hurricanes Irma and Maria disaster relief, claiming it was more than any state in history.
This week Trump released a hold on $8billion in hurricane funds after pressure from Democrats, including Nancy Pelosi, who ordered officials to ‘cease and desist that illegal activity’.
Politico reported that prior to the Department of Housing and Urban Development releasing the hurricane relief funds, Puerto Rico had only received $1.5billion of an agreed $20billion. The department had held back the money while waiting for the Federal Register to publish a plan on how it could be used.
Officials continue to check building structures for safety as they aim to reopen schools after the latest earthquake disaster.
News of the warehouse spread after online blogger Lorenzo Delgado relayed live video on Facebook of people breaking into the building. The scene became chaotic at times as people pushed their way in and began distributing water, baby food and other goods to those affected by the 6.4 magnitude earthquake on January 7.
Delgado later told reporters that he had received a tip about the warehouse, but gave no specifics on when.
In response to the discovery of supplies, including gas canisters, Governor Wanda Vázquez ordered an investigation and said inaction by fired official, Carlos Acevedo, was unacceptable.
President Donald Trump on January 16 freed up emergency aid for Puerto Rico’s recovery from a January 7 earthquake that caused widespread disruption and damage on the island. Pictured October 2017, Trump tosses paper towels into a crowd at Calvary Chapel in Guaynabo, after Hurricane Maria devastated the region
People break into a warehouse with supplies believed to have been from when Hurricane Maria struck
A crowd gathers after people broke into a warehouse with supplies believed to be owned by Puerto Rico’s Company of Commerce and Export
A man pulls a pallet of gas canisters at the supplies warehouse in Puerto Rico where thousands of items were found
A man holds a portable gas stove believed to have been from when Hurricane Maria struck the island in 2017
Locals carried off boxes of supplies after finding the warehouse on Saturday
‘There are thousands of people who have made sacrifices to help those in the south, and it is unforgivable that resources were kept in the warehouse,’ the governor said.
Officials have two days to investigate why the supplies were left behind.
Puerto Rico’s secretary of state, Elmer Román, told reporters that Acevedo had not told him about the contents of the warehouse.
People carry supplies after breaking into a warehouse with supplies. The chaos was sparked after a blogger shared the information online
Bottled water believed to have been from when Hurricane Maria struck the island in 2017 is pictured. It evokes memories of previously discovered life-saving water discovered on an airstrip after months in the sun
People reach out to receive supplies after a warehouse with supplies believed to have been from when Hurricane Maria struck
A man distributes supplies after breaking into a warehouse with supplies believed to have been from when Hurricane Maria. President Trump’s said in April that Puerto Rico was holding up its own disaster relief funds
The mayor of Ponce, María Meléndez, said he had not known about the warehouse and its contents.
Meléndez posted on Twitter: ‘Our people suffered greatly bc of how Hurricane María was managed. We cannot allow history to repeat itself. The City of Ponce and its Government had NO knowledge of the findings made in this warehouse near the Guancha de Ponce.’
‘This is outrageous,’ she said. ‘Everyone knows what us mayors went through after Hurricane Maria to try and get help to our cities and how we’ve worked these weeks to provide basic supplies to people affected by earthquakes. Those involved owe us an explanation.’
Inés Rivera, spokeswoman for the city of Ponce, told The Associated Press that the warehouse is owned by Puerto Rico´s Company of Commerce and Export. Officials with the company could not be reached for comment.
The information upset many in Puerto Rico already angry over the government’s botched response to Hurricane Maria, with similar incidents of supplies going unused being uncovered months later.
A woman carries boxes of baby diapers from warehouse filled with supplies, including thousands of cases of water
A woman carries boxes of baby wipes she removed as it was revealed cots, medicine and more had been abandoned
The shocking discovery comes after Democrats pushed for the release of Congress-approved emergency funds
Police arrive as people break into a warehouse filled with supplies that could have saved lives two years ago
A girl cries next to her mother after police evacuated people breaking into a warehouse filled with supplies
A young man kneels next to a portable gas stove he removed just in time before awareness spread and law enforcement showed up
A man stands next to a portable gas stove he removed before police came to stop them
Maria destroyed thousands of buildings and knocked out the electricity grid for 1.5 million people, which took 11 months to restore. As a result of the earthquake and the aftermath, it’s believed 3,000 people died.
Many people didn’t have access to clean water.
In August 2019, abandoned supplies were located in an elections office. Rats had torn through the food and medicine that could have saved lives.
Then in September 2019, a year after the hurricane, hundreds of pallets of water were found on an airstrip. The water had gone bad after months abandoned in the sun.
The outrage led it Governor Ricardo Rossello resigning in July 2019.
Ponce is one of several cities in the island’s southern region hit by the recent 6.4 magnitude earthquake that killed one person and caused more than an estimated $200 million in damage. More than 7,000 people remain in shelters since the quake.
The governor said she has sent the Senate her nomination of José Reyes, who oversees the National Guard in Puerto Rico, to be the new commissioner for the State Bureau for Emergency Management and Disaster Management.
A chihuahua dog sleeps on a cot in a tent city for hundreds of people displaced by earthquakes in Guanica, Puerto Rico on Tuesday
A tent city set up by the US army reserve stands in Guanica after a 6.4 magnitude quake that toppled or damaged hundreds of homes in southwestern Puerto Rico. Pictured Wednesday
Debris from a collapsed wall of a building litters the ground after an earthquake struck Puerto Rico before dawn, in Ponce
Governor Wanda Vazquez inspect an earthquake-damaged house in Guanica, Puerto Rico, last Monday
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